Tag: Katie Lau

Heartbreaking Bravery recently went offline but all facets of the site are back to being fully operational. Apologies for any inconveniences. All posts that were slated to run during that brief hiatus will appear with this note.

Katie Preston’s band, Pleistocene, has been consistently covered over the course of this site’s history (and were an important part of the A Step Forwardcompilation) so it’s good to have her be a part of this edition of A Year’s Worth of Memories. Better still, Preston turns her lens on a coterie of friends that have played a significant role in this site’s coverage, making her first entry into the series a little bit like a family affair. In recalling a weekend that had just occurred, Preston conjures up a lifetime’s worth of memories and gets to the root of what makes some things so meaningful. Buckle up and take it for a spin.

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This is taken pretty much straight out of my diary, which is why it’s told like it just happened, but really it happened back in April, even though it still stands out vividly to me.

There are good days and bad days. I sometimes go long periods of time where it feels like my day job takes up everything I’ve got. There are slumps and then there are moments of solid gold that kind of even it all out. This past weekend was more of a streak than a moment. My time was strictly spent doing the things that make me happy. We (Pleistocene) had a show at the Sanc, Dylan from Skirt’s place. If you’re lost at this point in the story, you are probably not from Rochester, NY but stick with me. There were about seventy youths there. By youths I mean adults who like seeing bands in basements.

Besides us, Green Dreams, Total Yuppies, and Potty Mouth played. We had a girl pit during Potty Mouth’s set. It felt good to bounce off each other, occasionally falling (lovingly) into the bassist, who stood a foot away from me on the same brown shag carpet. I took pictures of Abby after the show with her guitar for my zine. We got home late and left for NYC early Saturday morning. I worked on my zine on the way there, cutting out pictures of the people I’d seen play over the course of the month with their instruments into heart shapes. Erick made us stop for Arby’s twice. When we got to Brooklyn I got to meet my best friend’s new guy. Being long distance best friends, any new development in her life feels especially exciting, after only hearing stories about him for months.

Becca and I used to be in a band together in college called Paul’s Grandfather. When I lived in Brooklyn, I lived with Becca and worked at Crif Dogs with her. We used to be pretty much inseparable. My moving back to Rochester has been hard in that way. Her and I picked up where things left off by going out for piña coladas at Old Stanley’s with the rest of Pleistocene, hopping between there and the bodega next door for tacos before heading over to the show.

The venue was probably the shittiest I’ve ever played. No offense, Aviv. They’ve since changed locations and I’m sure it’s better now. But tonight Jim and the rest of the Painted Zeros were there and tons of other friends from past-lives who showed up from out of the woodwork. Slight played first. I got on Erick’s shoulders with a lighter, which got a couple laughs from the nine audience members. Then Sonny Baker’s band played, triggering old memories of Buffalo, NY.

A crowd started to fill in at this point. We had a fun set. I slid on my knees and scraped them up pretty good. Then Becca played. Her band, Bethlehem Steel was going through a line-up change so she played solo. She mesmerized us all, like always. We all got pretty drunk after. Palled around with Katie Lau over many Jager shots and ended up back at Old Stanley’s for more piña coladas and pinball. That night at Becca’s apartment we made the biggest, most disgusting plate of loaded nachos that was almost too gross to eat but that didn’t stop us from all picking at it for breakfast the next morning.

We left early Sunday so I could make it to rehearsal. It was my first time singing with both Mikaela Davis and Cammy Enaharo at the same time. Cammy, of course is in Pleistocene but this is a whole new venture. We were recording harmonies for our friend Ben’s album. Our voices surprised me when they first came together – like a shiver down the spine, except more like an electrocution. We decided that we should start a band and that band would be called the Vinaigrettes. There you have it, a weekend for the highlight reel for sure. Now I’m back to the working week, although that hardly seems so bad after a three day golden streak.

Over the past few weeks, a lot of excellent material has surfaced. Unsurprisingly, the bulk of that material has been singles. Since the time span was so extensive (mostly due to the attention afforded to the CMJ coverage), all but one of those songs have been compiled in a list that will be running at the very bottom of this post. The one exception is tonight’s featured song: Painted Zeros‘ “Only You”.

After being somewhat underwhelmed by Painted Zeros’ set at Alphaville (which, to their credit, seemed to have more to do with the sound setup than their performance), the band knocked me for a loop during CMJ at Aviv. Having already commented on the impressive nature of their quieter material from their upcoming Floriography, it’s heartening to see the trio committing to “Only You”– a clear standout from their CMJ set– as their latest release in the album’s rollout campaign..

Driven by a gentle, intricate bass figure that comes courtesy of Jim Hill (who also plays in Slight, The Glow, and Montana and the Marvelles), “Only You” serves as a showcase for guitarist/vocalist Katie Lau’s more pensive side as well as the band’s considerable growth. Floating along like a fully-realized dream seeped in tranquility, “Only You” far surpasses the very evident promise of S V A L B A R D. Defying any easy genre categorization while flashing hints of the very best elements of everything from dream pop to post-punk, the song finds a soft transcendence and sustains it through its final, fading moments. From start to finish, “Only You” is a lovely, unexpected triumph.

Listen to “Only You” below and pre-order Floriography from Don Giovanni here. Beneath the embed, explore a collection of some of the best songs to find release over the past two weeks.

The first building I stepped foot inside of after moving to Brooklyn in June was David Blaine’s The Steakhouse (DBTS for short). Montana and the Marvelles were wrapping up a practice and it took less than a minute for things to start coming across as familial. It was a sense that continuously expanded as time passed, making it incredibly clear that it was a venue that helped foster a tight-knit community of like-minded people. It’s in that spirit that the DBTS: BS compilation series was created.

DBTS: BS1, the first entry into the series, was a collection of demos, outcasts from a variety of notable projects all connected to the DBTS family in one way or another. It was an intriguing project that helped kick off would what prove to be a remarkably successful year for the residents of DBTS and their wide-reaching network of ridiculously talented friends.

Now, just ten months after the debut compilation, they’re issuing a sequel, DBTS: BS2. All of these songs are either sourced from idling projects, covers, castoffs that would otherwise be bound for homelessness, or early stage demos. Members of LVL UP, Downies, Slight, Porches., Painted Zeros, Glueboy, Bethlehem Steel, and Big Ups all contribute material through either their main vehicle, a side project, or as a solo or collaborative effort.

It’s an impressive effort from a collective that keeps spreading outward and gaining momentum without ever losing sight of a steadfast commitment to a DIY ethos. So, with all of that in mind, it’s with honor and admiration that I present the premiere of DBTS: BS2, the latest step forward for the makeshift family that’s given me a place that’s easy to consider as a home.

Initially, this was going to be a name-your-price ordeal for a limited time with all proceeds going towards funds to their neighbors at The Silent Barn, who are still running repairs after the venue caught fire several weeks ago. However, the presence of covers on the compilation prompted justified concerns over legal matters. Even with that being the case, The Silent Barn could still use as much help as they get, so if this is a compilation you find yourself enjoying, please consider showing your appreciation in the form of a donation to aid their recovery.

Stream DBTS: BS2 below and watch a collection of live footage from DBTS shot over the summer beneath the embed.